Wanted: Intentional Conversations

By Rabbi Mark Diamond
Published on June 20, 2012

Very random thoughts…

By Julia Bendis
Published on January 21, 2011

You talking to me? When dogs are our best friends

By Merrill Markoe
Published on November 2, 2006

The story behind "Walking in Circles Before Lying Down." The book is about a woman who so loses track of the direction her life should be taking that when she finds that she can suddenly talk to dogs, she starts wondering whether they are offering advice worth taking.

Assad Faces Trouble on All Fronts

By Gil Sedan
Published on March 3, 2005

Syrian President Bashar Assad is confused and worried. The heat is on, and it's not clear he can take it.

Israel points a menacing finger at Syria for hosting terrorists, accusing it of enabling last Friday's deadly terrorist attack in Tel Aviv, which has been blamed on the Damascus-based Islamic Jihad.

Assad has said he wants to renew peace talks with Israel, but at the same time he wants to please his backyard radicals. In addition, anti-Syrian sentiment in Lebanon is sizzling; the United States and France are pressing Syria to withdraw from Lebanon; the United States is growing impatient with Syria's tolerance of Palestinian and Iraqi terrorists; Assad wants to appease the United States without losing his face with Arab hardliners; and Syria's longtime ally, Egypt, is toying with "democracy," while Assad's own internal reforms are stuck.

So which way can he go?

Ask Wendy

By Wendy Belzberg
Published on January 8, 2004

Ask Wendy

He Said: Ready for Second Time Around

By Adam Wills
Published on November 13, 2003

I spent months planning our weekend trip to Las Vegas: from an indulgent massage at Mandara day spa and dinner at Mon Ami Gabi to "Mamma Mia" at the Mandalay Bay. Wendy was having a fabulous time.

But when I suggested we go to the top of the Eiffel Tower replica at Paris, where we were staying, my Francophile stopped me cold at the elevator.

"We need to talk," she said.

Chains of Support

By Julie G Fax
Published on October 10, 2002

Two days after her radical breast cancer surgery last May, Missy Stein hit that moment where all the emotional and physical implications of her condition came crashing in on her.

But then she remembered Sari Abrams' words.

Big Mouth Strikes, Again

By J.D. Smith
Published on August 29, 2002

A few years ago, the rabbi offered the following challenge to the congregation: Spend one full day without gossiping whatsoever. His definition includes saying bad things about people, things which may happen to be true. It wasn't easy. My sister and I almost made it out of the temple parking lot before we lost the bet. Being good just don't come natural to some people.

Parshat Beha’alotcha

By Abby Gilad
Published on May 30, 2002

Parshat Beha'alotcha

A Portion of Parshat Yitro

By Abby Gilad
Published on January 31, 2002

A Portion of Parshat Yitro

Golden-Aged Tell-All

By Hank Rosenfeld
Published on March 1, 2001

The scene: Avenue of the Stars, Century City.

The characters: A few older men in a Park Hyatt suite.

The action: They kibbitz

Turner Classic Movies (TCM) is here from Atlanta to interview Golden Age Hollywood figures for an oral history, the Turner Classic Movies Archive Project. TCM's goal is to get all available witnesses to tell their cinematic stories. The project is modeled after the Survivors of the Shoah Visual History Foundation.

Getting Ready

By Gil Sedan
Published on July 20, 2000

As their leaders are talking peace, many Israelis and Palestinians are preparing for war.They include not only militant Jewish settlers and members of the fundamentalist Palestinian Hamas movement, but also the Israeli army and the troops of Palestinian Authority President Yasser Arafat's Fatah group.